YankeeToon

What a disappointing way to end the night. Had to work all day, TiVO'd the match. bluesigh.gif And ManU on Monday... the hits just keep on comin'...

'Cause South American flair's worked wonders for the Hammers this season! bluebiggrin.gif

a) no b) no c) no d) no

Rather not rush his comeback & give him time to find his old form again (hoping, of course, that there's no lasting damage to his game) than have him push himself to get ready by the end of the season & re-injure himself. I think it's good that he's set himself a goal of getting back in this season, but I hope our fitness staff will keep him from doing anything stupid in the process.

Opinions on Luque notwithstanding, he's spot-on with his last post.

Yeah, you can't be too careful with those recurring toe injuries. Best to hang it up now while he can still enjoy retired life.

Oh, boy. Another Luque thread hijack begins. 76 pages wasn't enough? Oba!!!

FA rejected the appeal. Here

Take the Blackburn approach, then?

Probably true, though I doubt there's much chance of him coming here, either. Would still rather we build up our own squad rather than help Chelsea improve theirs. Even IF Owen returns at full strength, which is in no way certain at this point, our real striking options are just him and Martins, plus Shola, assuming he can recover and assuming that he's not crap to begin with. Rossi's gone in Jan, and probably Luque with him, Dyer and Sibbers are both really midfielders who can play as striker in a pinch... Would rather bring in another striker permanently than take a loan.

Personally, I can take him or leave him Always considered him overrated. On a loan, might do, but his current form is pretty mediocre. His passing for Chelsea this season has been very hit-or-miss and his finishing has been the same. I'd rather build up partnerships between our own players than help Chelsea's star signing find his shooting boots so that he can return to Chelsea and justify his signing fee.

Great... another unsettled European who can't find the net. Just what we need...

What?! No Boumsong? Outraged, I say! bluebiggrin.gif

Liverpool, Sunderland, Spurs. And West Ham mainly because I loathe Argentina and love watching Teeveez and Maraschino fail in the Premiership.

Nah, no pace. Runs like he's got nails in his feet...

First-half diagnosis? Why was Ameobi started? Another example of sentiment over strategy, giving him a chance for glory before dipping off for surgery, despite the fact that he was in nowhere near good enough shape to play. A few promising signs in midfield - the build up to Parker's wasted, weak shot was actually a string of pretty decent passes. We should try that more often. Second-half diagnosis? Roeder made some decent substitutions, and did it with enough time to actually affect the game. Though I'm not sure why he didn't have any real striking or defending options on the bench. We were lucky that Carr was the one who picked up an injury. Any other defender and we'd have had a lot harder time replacing him. Excellent last 5 minutes. We actually looked like a Premiership team. Full-time diagnosis? A point away is better than we deserved for most of the game, and certainly helps us more than another loss. Star man for United? Harper or Dyer Worst United player? Ameobi, though to be fair, he shouldn't have even been on. Opposition comment? Should've scored after their subs. Angrier about the draw than we are, I'm sure... Toon-pros? Good use of substitutions. Threatening goals with no actual striker up front in the last 5 mins... If we can do that from the get-go and find someone who can finish, we'll stay up. Toon-cons? Still giving the ball away too easily and losing in the air. Still having trouble beating the first man on corners, and wasting free kicks. Defense still having trouble linking up and moving forward, and still nobody up front worth a damn. Post-match feelings? Not nearly as gloom-and-doom as most on here, apparently. I'm not saying we played fantastically, by any stretch, but looking at it objectively, there were some promising signs that we may be able to turn around the season.

3 out of 7 chance of drawing a team we could beat... Would've been worse if ManU had made it. We could still have a fair chance of making the semifinal...

Okay, I'll give a straight answer, mainly because I haven't been here long enough to have any kind of reputation... If the choice is between spending ANY money or spending NO money, I'll take option "A." I think a few good purchases in the transfer window will shore up a lot of the squad problems we're having. Yes, it's a gamble, since there's no real way of predicting how a new signing will fit in once they're here, but playing it safe and clamping down on the purse strings seems to me a less-likely way to avoid relegation. Our squad right now has some serious weak points, and trying to ride out the rest of the season with fingers crossed in the hopes that we'll avoid the drop seems the more foolish choice. Spending a little cash on a few solid defenders and maybe a reliable goal-scorer, if we can find anyone that's willing to come here, seems a calculated risk. Our potential returns (staying up & a stronger squad) outweigh the potential risks (going down & deeper in debt) because with the investment in a stronger back 4, we increase our likelihood of staying up. Spending the cash on worthless has-beens because we can't find anyone else, on the other hand, would be a complete waste. Of course, it's all a crap shoot anyway, since there are a lot more factors than just transfer window spending. I'd rather risk it and have a stronger side for the 2nd half of the season, and I wouldn't fault the board for spending the cash if the gamble didn't work. At least we'd have done something to try and fight back.

"It's a blip!" sez bloated, blotchy blimp...

Don't actually live there, so I can't go. But I'll still follow every game even if we're relegated. No fair-weather fan, me.

Got it. Thanks.

Okay, I have a feeling this is a stupid Yank question, so feel free to berate me for it, but what's a CV?

That seems to be Roeder's only tactic, long balls in the general direction of the strikers. Surprise, surprise, doesn't seem to be working for us.

I'd hold off on that plan for a while... Was planning on trying to fly out from the USA to finally see a live game, but not when we're playing like this... You and me both.

If he's seriously not feeling any pressure yet, that's the most troubling thing I've heard so far. Sounds like he really doesn't give a damn if we go down. ANY manager sitting at the bottom of the table should be shitting bricks trying to turn things around. If you're not feeling pressure when your team's at the bottom, you've got no business managing in the Premiership.